We meet so many charming clients and customers visiting our shop who are immediately transported into a world of flowers, creative ideas and everything that eminates style, so it no wonder really, we are then often asked where we eat out and what restaurants we would recommend they can try out whilst they are in Marbella.
Loraine is far more elegant than me and is the real connoisseur of dining, I cannot compete with Loraine's dining experiences as she is out every night, in fact I bought Loraine a sign earlier this year which says 'I only have a kitchen because it came with the house'!
Since Loraine and I met we do constantly compare notes and often go out now together to try out new venues and of course visit our favourites.
Everyone keeps saying we should start a restaurant blog and perhaps one day we might but at the moment I am too busy in wedding world, but a plan in thought is always exciting!
I am happy for now to incorporate this into our wedding blog as I know we get a huge amount of visitors each day, now over 850, and this is also about my life, my thoughts and my inspirations as well as creating and designing weddings, parties and interiors.
Both Loraine and I have high standards regarding foods and wines.
Having said this I spend my summer, when I get my precious free time, at my local beach bar which is hardly restaurant critic standard but never the less fab, if you are not looking for anything remotely posh or amazing, fresh fish and salad with Vinasol!
Our family have always been lucky in the fact that my parents often took us out for meals from a very young age, not to the local Wimpey, but to fabulous restaurants in London such as the Knightbridge Sporting Club, The Spaghetti House in Knightsbridge, here in Marbella at the Marbella Club, many restaurants around Orange Square and Puerto Banus in the seventies and some famous restaurants where we lived in South England, looking back we were probably quite spoilt!
Although my career never took the direction of food, my sister's did and she is a highly experienced food, cookery and style editor, her knowledge and skills about food and presentation are second to none and she has produced literally hundreds of fabulous food, wine and styling books in her career. I concentrated on making everything look pretty!
My only claim to stamping any mark on my culinary skills was to take a Cordon Bleu course whilst I was at a finishing school.
Waitrose recipe cards were a godsend when I was trying to be the perfect wife, mother and goddess in the early days and I have been quite good in the kitchen eversince but much prefer going out to try proper masterchef style food :)
We are thoroughly spoilt here in Marbella, there are so many creative restaurants, amazing chefs and a real dedication to providing probably one of the best culinery areas in Europe outside the big cities.
We recently recommend the Cervantes restaurant in the Orange Square in Marbella, who I now see have a facebook page and a website, they did tell us this was imminent, so here is the website link, I am already planning what to eat next time I go!
Another restaurant I was taken to this summer, by my delightful friend Andrew, again a foodie and connoiseur of the finer things in life, that has stuck in my mind and I cannot wait to get back there was La Moraga in Puerto Banus.
Again delicious small portions of food, the blackened cod and asparagus I still dream about, delightful. I think the only downside of this restaurant is the location, would be fabulous on the beach or in Marbella old town, and the fact you have to now queue to get in as it is so popular, something really I am not prepared to do, so this puts me off. You cannot book here and you are in and out which a dining experience is not really about for me.
My lovely friend Heather from Fiestasol said she went there today, she was there at 1.30pm ready for when it opened and there was already a queue. However rave food review from Heather who runs her own catering company, perhaps I should make the effort to queue again for another blackened cod!
Heather is now off to try Cervantes, I don't think she will be disappointed :)
